explosion happened inside the fukushima reactor. john alston has been monitoring this story and has more. >> since our last newscast, we learned of another emergency. about an hour ago, now cooling systems have malfunctioned at yet another reactor unit at the fukushima nuclear plant. now there's three reactors faked. earlier today, a billing that housed one of the reactors exploded, forcing evacuation of 170,000 nearby residents. i the latest million occurs hours after the explosion at the power plant. that blew the exproof walls off the building but did not destroy the number one reactor. it's too early to know the full extent of the crisis. >> the major result indicates that things are getting better. but this is such a complicated

system, and the damage, we do not know the damage and details completely. >> reporter: the professor believes there has already been a small meltdown. japanese officials are pumping seawater into the core, choo would eventually render the plant useless. it could take days. >> within a few days we have to make sure that the things are under control in terms of heat removal. >> that's possible? >> that's possible, i think. >> reporter: antinuclear activist in california say that is a perfect example of how the japanese failed to prepare for disaster and are now keeping citizens in the dark. >> from the track record, we're not surprised how little they might know, but this situation is totally new, and it's very difficult to find out properly what is actually happening on the site. >> reporter: the tsunami knocked out power to the system that

cools the nuclear fuel rods. a sear -- scenario the james -- japanese cannot overcome. >> we know a tsunami could be a major impact, so perhaps we should review this tsunami facts and the reactor safety more carefully. >> reporter: reuters is reporting the plant managers are releasing air from one of the damaged reactors. the government is claiming radiation levels decrease after the explosion, although nine people may have suffered radiation sickness. virtually any increase in disbursed radiation can raise the risk of cancer, and authorities are planning to distribute iodine which protects against thyroid cancer. >> alan: we'll continue following this story very carefully. federal regulators say

california's diablo canyon are operating normally today. both were monitored by inspectors during the sometime threat. the diablo canyon plant declared an unusual event, which is the lowest of four levels of emergency classification. the regulatory commission says all nuclear plants in california are designed to withstand tsunamis and earthquakes. >> we're continuing to reef dramatic video from join. this is a escape as the tsunami swept through a town.

>> alan: some incredible footage there. the tsunami advisory on the west coast has been cancelled. while the damage here doesn't compare to what we have seen in japan, there is significant damage in crescent city and santa cruz. we're in santa cruz this evening. >> reporter: the damage here is pretty phenomenal. especially when you consider the tsunami was triggered 5,000 miles away. the santa cruz harbor here is officially closed, and it will be at least through tomorrow. this is what is left of u dock. the debris can be seen everywhere, but unfortunately the boats cannot. many of those tied to the dock sunk. cheryl and her son's boat is underwater. >> my son was on the boat, and he has lost his home and everything on it. we just don't have -- we don't know what to do. >> reporter: the harbor is the

site of a massive response. crews from the coast guard to the department of fish and game. >> at this time we're mobilizing structural engineers to look at the piers throughout the harbor to make sure our businesses and commercial fishery can continue to operate. >> reporter: the tsunami surges did an estimated $17.1 million in damage. sinking 18 boats and damaging at least 100 others. and there's the environmental concern with pills and leaking fuel. >> the primary concern is getting the sunken boats out of the water and get the fuel stopped. it's looking good. >> reporter: debris removal has begun. the next step is to get boats off the harbor floor. one method involves the use of giant air bags. >> large balloons you put underneath or cranes. >> reporter: those hardest hits

or those with insurance are wondering how long. >> two or three months before we'll see a nickel. so people who have lost our homes on the dock, what are re going to do? >> reporter: there's a lot of heartache and unanswered questions, but the cleanup is well underway. the first boat pulled was just hauled away a few moments ago, there is a strong smell of diesel in the air, but that fuel is being mopped up. abc-7 news. >> alan: thank you. the u.s. coast guard surveyed the damage in crescent city by helicopter, and they provided this footage for us. at least six boats are confirmed sunk and docks and moorings have been destroyed. repeated surges tossed beats for 24 hours. the harbor master estimates damage to be between 25 to

$25 million. appears to be a more significant event than the last tsunami to hit kris crescent city in 2006. a bay area man's attempt to fly back here from tokyo. those who made it back were greet with an emotional homecoming. dozens lost their home this more than after a fire in albany. and a celebration of earth during everything irish on market street. >> leigh: hi there. i'm leigh glaser. plenty of sunshine across the bay area today. you may have noticed in the past couple hours high clouds streaming cross the region. look for

>> closed captioning brought to >> closed captioning brought to >> alan: a sunnyvale maintenance desperately trying to get out of japan. he and his family were scheduled to fly out of tokyo but the main help was shut done. his biggest concern is now the continuing threat from the power plant. >> all pretty nervous about the nuclear reactor. we're extremely worried about it. we don't -- the people here don't think it will be chernobyl size because it's smaller but that not much consolation. >> alan: they're planning to take the bullet train to osack ca and cack a flight out.

the uss reagan has arrived to support japanese forces. hundreds of bay area residents are making it back. we were at san francisco international airport this morning for the emotional eunions. >> lots of hugs as some of the federal -- first flights arrived from tokyo, including this tearful reunion. his dad was caught in the earthquake. >> there's also a tsunami and i'm like, is he by the tsunami? she is like, no. he is at the airport. >> he is in the airport. it was scary. >> reporter: many who returned home were on their way to the airport in tokyo or at the airport when the earthquake struck. >> most people were expecting -- some people were standing and couldn't even stand up. it was rolling.

>> reporter: then everything came to a standstill. public transportation came to a screeching halt. flights cancelled. trains stopped. laura was stuck on a train for 16 hours. >> the train was not full. we were able to flip our seats around and able to sleep with our luggage bridging the gap. >> reporter: the japanese officials took good care of them, and a menlo park man seconds that. >> they were handing out ritz crackers, water and sleeping bags. so we spent the night there and waited to get home today. >> back home, but their hearts go out to those in japan. >> alan: in another part of sfo, a japanese rescue team jumped on a plane to fly home. they were training with the men lo fire department when the

quake hit. six of the rescuers returned today. two of them lost their homes and one man's mother is unaccounted for. 74 members of a los angeles search and rescue team left for japan. they took 74,000 pounds of equipment and six dogs and could be gone for more than three weeks. teams in oakland and menlo park are also prepared to go if they get the call. >> san francisco republic japanese business and community leaders are seeking help for the tsunami victims. the cultural and community center of northern california has created a relief fund for victims. 100% of the donations will good to the victims. in other news, arab countries are asking the united nations to impose a no-fly zone over lip -- libya but the u.s. has been unwilling to impose that restriction unilaterally.

al a cameraman was killed in an ambush in the city of benghazi. >> mike: a buzzer beater kind of day in college hoops. washington got their shot to go in the final second to force o.t., and you won't

acknowledge.

>> alan: one person is in the hospital and dozens are homeless after a fire in albany. firefighters say the flames and black smoke could be seen coming out of the second floor. firefighters were able to get it under control in an hour. crews are now investigating the cause. the streets of san francisco were filled with green today for the 160th annual st. patrick days parade. the largest irish event west of the mississippi. floats, dance triewps and marching band proceeded dupe market -- down market street to city hall. they had traditional irish food, music, and dancing. and they did it all under the sun. >> leigh: under the sun for a change. normally they have to deal with the rain. not today. rain is in the forecast, but a live look from the high

definition east bay cam. and this is well over the bay there. you'll notice high clouds starting to drift in, and those clouds will be thickening throughout the night. 56 in napa. 58 in fairfield. 60 in oakland. redwood city, 61. san francisco, 54. 57 in san rafael. and 57 right now in san jose. so, we're going to go with increasing clouds overnight tonight. don't forget, before you go to sleep tonight, set your clock ahead, time to spring forward one hour as we begin day light saving time tomorrow morning at 2:00 a.m. rain returns for us as we head into our sunday afternoon. here's a look at some overnight temperatures tonight. the clouds will be moving in. mainly high clouds, temperature-wise, most of us in the 40s. 48 san francisco. oakland getting down to 47. 46 for antioch. 42, livermore. high clouds drifted by thanks to

the system to the north. and you can see the clouds gathering off the coast, all in association with this cold front to the west. most of the energy in the system is going to head to the north of the bay area. it's the tail end right here that swings by us and brings us the rain. if you have plans tomorrow morning, do not cancel them. this will move in late sunday afternoon and sunday night. here's the timing. thicken up the clouds overnight, and the clouds moving in by 1:00, 2:00, you see the first rain band starts to move in mainly in the north bay of. by: 45 tomorrow -- by 5:00 tomorrow, we'll see the cloud move in and it will be a sunday night, monday morning event, and the bulk of the rain out by the monday morning commute. how much rainfall? maybe a half an inch in the

north bay. the rest of us, a trace to quarter inch. here's a look at temperatures for sunday. a little filtered sunshine before the clouds race in here. 62 for cupertino. half moon bay, 59. low 60s for the peninsula. palo alto, 63. 69 downtown san francisco. around 2:00, 3:00, we start to see the rain move in. 58 for santa rosa. 60 for napa. east bay, 62. fremont, 62. 62 for concord and pittsburg. my accuweather seven-day forecast. a break in the action by monday. a little bit of sunshine. north bay, tuesday, rain in your forecast. and then very unsettled wednesday, periods of offand on

showers. >> alan: shu is here and march madness is shaping up. >> mike: the second-ranked stanford women knew they were going to the tournament probably as the number one seerkd but ucla didn't care and they gave the cardinal a scare. stanford looking for his 57th 57th straight win over a conference opponent, but ucla had a different idea. campbell connects from deep. bruins up five with 10:00 to play. the cardinal are champions for a reason. ogwumike, the putback and the foul. she had 15. 'then tony, had a 10-0 run of her own in the final five-plus minutes. a career high for tony. stanford wins its sixth straight pac-10 tournament title. pac-10 member's final, arizona and washington. condoleezza rice sticking around.

isaiah thomas, the clutch triple. moments later, the cats beat the pressments the finish and the foul. three-pointer makes it of 6-6 2. ten second left. wilcox, huge three to tie it at 68. goes to overtime. in o.t., 25 seconds left. arizona down three. now we're tied. five second left. huskies put the ball in the hands of isaiah thomas. are you kidding me? the stepback jumper at the buzzer. washington downs arizona, '7-75. to the battle of the brains, harvard and princeton. 16 seconds left. harvard down one. curry in the lane. princeton ties, takes the lead. one last chance for the tigers. three second left. davis, the offbalance shot at the buzzer goes and the tigers are going dancing. princeton wins it, 63-62.

>> how about some cactus league action. season opener a couple weeks away but when the giants and dodgers play, it's mid-season form. bryan -- brian wilson fans. fear the beer. cody ross, mid-season form, two-run homer to left puts the g-men up in the third. pat burrell showing up at the long-ball party. deep to left, it's gone. bottom ninth. two outs, game tied at 7. gary brown, hero for the day. the outfield prospect, the single into right. the score from second. gives the giants the victory, and the traditional rookie post game interview. the a's and mariners on a sun-soaked afternoon. chris carter, single 'the middle, scores mark ellis.

in the second, josh bard lines one into the right center gap. puts adam kennedy over the plate. ichiro makes it 3-1. seattle wins big 10-2. >> let's tee it up at doral's blue month store. tiger woods trying to reinvent his swing again. perfect scoring conditions for the cadillac championship, but tying we're not make a run. banks on the birdie putt. 2-under 70 for tiger. 2-under for the tournament. those in con tefntle luke donald, looking for the second wgc win of the year. birdie putt. 11-under. also at 11-under, matt kuchar, par-4 3 them. right speed, distance, line and result. but they're chasing dustin johnson. second from 120 yards out.

13-under. two-stroke lead going into sunday. >> sharks on the ice. have that for you at 11:00. >> alan: we'll have an update on the nuclear power plant in japan the nuclear power plant in japan right after this.

go! go! completing an atm deposit in record time... that's a step forward. go! go! with deposit friendly atms, you can make ultra fast, secure deposits with no slips or envelopes. take a step forward and chase what matters.

>> alan: here are the late head lns out of japan. an hour ago the country was

rattled by another aftershock, 6.2 mag any -- mag -- magnitude. officials pumped seawater into reactors to avoid a disaster. more than 215,000 people are living in temporary shelters. four million households remain without power, and a large area of the countryside are surrounded by water and unreachable because of debris. we'll have the latest on this tonight at 11:00. thanks for joining us.